Juveniles with life sentences one step from gaining parole eligibility

BATON ROUGE - Nearly all 10 criminal justice proposals backed by Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards are now awaiting his signature, while the remaining proposal is one step away from final passage.

The House on Wednesday approved two bills which are focused on easing the financial burdens ex-offenders face when they are released.

The Senate then backed a conference committee's proposal to grant parole eligibility after 25 years to murderers who are serving life sentences for crimes they committed as teenagers. District attorneys would be allowed to obtain no-parole sentences for someone a judge declares to be among "the worst of the worst."